On Thursday, Amazon published a shortlist of 20 finalists for its much-desired second headquarters. In Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Los Angeles, Toronto, and the 16 other (fairly unsurprising) cities that made the cut, mayors and economic development organizations jumped for joy.

But in 218 other cities, it was a hard day; boosters of these left-behind towns experienced the full spectrum of grief, from shock and denial to acceptance and hope. We have documented their mourning process below.

“Thank you to all 238 communities that submitted proposals. Getting from 238 to 20 was very tough—all the proposals showed tremendous enthusiasm and creativity. Through this process we learned about many new communities across North America that we will consider as locations for future infrastructure investment and job creation.”

—Holly Sullivan, Amazon Public Policy

1) Shock and denial

Tariq Bokhari,City Council member, Charlotte, North Carolina

While I'm happy for Raleigh, I simply cannot understand how CLT doesn't make the shortlist for Amazon's HQ2. If you had told me the shortlist was 5 cities and CLT wasn't on it, I could understand that. I could even nod my head if you said 10. But 20... and no CLT? C'mon man...

3) Anger and bargaining

Chris Brown, City Controller, Houston, Texas

1. Hey @amazon: I'm sure it's just an oversight, but I see that #Houston isn't on your shortlist for HQ2. Here are some reasons why you (or any business, organization, or family) should make Houston home:

We’re disappointed that Calgary was not included on Amazon’s #HQ2 short list, but we’re proud of Calgary’s bold campaign and our community for rallying around it. The global attention received will help attract other companies to come to #yyc. But in the meantime, go, Toronto go! pic.twitter.com/GdFzLvbFWN

5) The upward turn

Mayor Sly James, Kansas City, Missouri

I understand that some Kansas Citians may be disappointed by the Amazon announcement, but it’s important to remember that as a result of this very collaborative effort, more people today know more great things about Kansas City than they ever did before. Onward & upward #KC5Stars

6) Reconstruction and working through

Scott Maxwell, Orlando Sentinelcolumnist, Orlando, Florida

Love my city, but there is a disappointing lack of candor, self-awareness in this piece when Orlando leaders say the only reason we missed out on Amazon HQ2 was because this community didn't "pitch" itself well.
That's simply not true.https://t.co/KB2cG5PvrX

7) Acceptance and hope

Marcus Green, reporter, WDRB News, Louisville, Kentucky

Joint statement from @KentOyler of @GLIchamber and Mary Ellen Wiederwohl of Louisville Forward, the city's economic development agency, on #HQ2 bid: “Greater Louisville submitted a very competitive bid for Amazon HQ2. We will continue to swing for the fences every day.”

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